In Laughter, In Strife
by LegsLegsLegs
Summary: In late November of the year 1989, a probable cure for HIV/AIDS was discovered in a small laboratory in Washington state. This cure came with a side effect, however. One that would change the world. Hi, I'm Angel. And this is my story.
1. Prologue: A Cure

A/N: **Lynn**: So, this is short...but it's a kind of teaser to get you interested! We're (meaning Marky's Scarfy and I) are very excited to get you interested! There may be a while between updates, because we're both busy high school students, but we are going to try and update as often as we can. Be warned, this story is for people with very open minds. Later you may think we're strange, but...WE DON'T CARE! Katie, anything from you?

**Katie**: Sure! Welcome to our lovely story that is full of cliffhangers and drama-rama and love and...well, I can't say much more without giving it away. I hope you all love it because thing was so fun to write or, rather, RP.

**Lynn**: Yes! And you better respect the uber RP! We sat around for MONTHS working on this thing! The WHOLE FRIGGIN SUMMER. So be nice…please? Gracias.

NOW ON WITH THE SHOW!!

Disclaimer: We, Katie and Lynn the fangirls, do not own the wonderfulness that is RENT. We are just playing with the characters for a while. We'll return them to the toybox when we're done, Jonathon Larson. But do you mind if we keep Mark and Roger for a little while after? Angel too, maybe…? You mind? Darnit…

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Prologue: A Cure Is Found

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In late November of the year 1989, a probable cure for HIV/AIDS emerged in a small laboratory in Washington state. This information was kept well-hidden as only its discoverer, Doctor Austin Princeton and his assistant Doctor Darnell Sheer knew of its existence.

After three months of development and tests on the medication, it was presented to the Food and Drug Administration. The plan was to first administer the medicine to chronic patients then release it to the public, perhaps develop an insurance plan to apply to the victims of the disease.

The treatment was first administered in intravenous doses, three in all over a week-long period. Then there was a regiment of pills the patient would have to take for two months at specific times (which wouldn't be too much of a change for people already on a planned AZT regiment) and if both treatments took, all that was left to do was supply the patient with one more month's supply of AZT, just in case, and once that was done, the patient was considered officially cured.

On April 29, 1990, the first treatments began. By late June, nine patients had been completely cured and the tenth, whom had been chronic, had reverted to HIV from the advanced state of AIDS her disease had morphed into and was still improving. The treatment was introduced to the public and charities began fundraisers. (the government had refused all financial assistance plans.) By 1993, AIDS and HIV were all but wiped out in the United States of America.

But there was a side effect. One no one ever saw coming and one that forever changed the world. Whether for better or worse, you decide.

Hi. I'm Angel. And this is my story.

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End Chapter; TBC

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A/N: We told you it was shooooort…stay tuned for moooore…do we have you interested? Frightened? Interested and frightened? Lovely…

-Lynn and Katie (Katlynn888 and Marky's Scarfy)


	2. Chapter 1: The Life Cafe

_A/N: Welcome to the second chapter all! I, Katie/Marky, will be writing my part of the A/Ns in Italics and Lynn will be writing in…non-Italics. :) You know, I really don't have much else to add…Do you, Lynn? _

Hmm… Nup! :D Just leave us lots of pretty reviews like you did last time! That was really great of you guys; both Katie and I appreciate all the reviews you left. :D

Disclaimer: The writers Marky's Scarfy and Katlynn888 do not own RENT. Jonathan Larson, may he rest in peace, owns this fabulous piece of musical theater that we just use to keep the plot bunnies hopping around and elves at bay. :)

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Chapter 1: The Life Café  


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Like they did every Friday, Mimi Marquez and Angel Dumott Schunard made their way into the Life Cafe. It was late June; almost July. Any normal person would have been sweating bullets anyway - sweat ran down Angel's own back, making her feel rather uncomfortable and disgusting as it gathered in the small of her back, under her tank top. But Mimi was eight months pregnant, and had barely been able to stand the walk over. She was huffing and puffing, gripping her swollen stomach. Her forehead was dotted with sweat. This was why Angel was cautiously gripping her best friend's arm as she hobbled through the door of the restaurant. Both Latinas sighed in relief as the air conditioner hit them, closing their eyes and just basking in the cool for a few minutes.

The weekend host recognized them and smiled, taking two menus out from the shelf in the podium and led them through the restaurant to the table they always sat at.

"We take a taxi next time," Angel grumbled as Mimi squeezed herself into their usual booth. Angel had suggested they change to a table around the start of the third trimester, - i.e., when Mimi really started getting huge - but Mimi had insisted she could still get in the thing. Mimi was being stubborn. 'I can do it' was repeated about fifteen times a day by the Latina now, though on average only about five of those statements turned out true. Being such a skinny person, pregnancy was taking a lot out of her.

"Fine," Mimi sighed. This was the hottest summer she had seen in her years in New York City and by the forecast from the weather man; it wasn't going to be getting any better. As the waitress came around for orders, Mimi requested "Can I get an omelet with peppers, bacon, olives, --"

"Mimi, you're ordering eggs, not a pizza," Angel pointed out with a giggle. She received a stuck out tongue before Mimi continued her order with grape jelly and salsa on the side with an orange juice. The waitress gave her a look, to which Mimi replied with, "It's a pregnancy thing."

The waitress shrugged and took Angel's order of a plate of huevos rancheros and a cup of black coffee. She bounced away, leaving them alone.

"How's Roger doing with the Lamaze stuff that Maureen's helping you guys with?" Angel asked. Recently, Maureen had taken up yoga so she had taught all her friends, or rather made them do, some poses before she got bored with that and learned breathing exercises, which had actually come in handy with Mimi's bun in the oven.

"She's been…Well, she's been Maureen, we'll put it that way," Mimi explained. When the waitress came back with Angel's coffee and Mimi's juice, Mimi eyed the coffee with envy. "I miss coffee."

"But you'd rather miss coffee for nine months than have a child bouncing off the walls all the time," Angel pointed out, taking a drink. "So, Mimi, with me being your best friend and all, can I please know the sex of the baby?" she begged.

Mimi pretended to think for a moment, before grinning and nodding. "A girl. We're naming her Daphne. Daphne Rose."

Angel grinned as she took a sip of her coffee. "Oh, honey, that's such a pretty name! Daphne Rose Davis. It's got a really nice ring to it. Oh, and with her genes she's gonna be just as pretty as her name!"

Mimi giggled at the praise, rubbing her hands over her swollen stomach and looking down at it with love. "I just can't wait, Angel. I never thought I'd want to be a mom but now...I want to be one so bad. I just can't wait for this baby."

"As it should be," Angel replied with a small nod.

"By the way," Mimi said after taking a sip of orange juice. "We were gonna wait until she was born, but Mark already found out that he's the godfather, so I just wanted to tell you that Roger and I decided to name you Daphne's godmother."

Even though Angel was pretty sure she was going to be the godmother, she was still surprised enough to squeal with happiness. "Oh, thank you, honey!" she rejoiced.

"Angel, you know there's no one that I'd trust more with her," Mimi rubbed her stomach gently, "then you, if something ever happened to Roger and I. Plus, you get to be the babysitter, like, permanently," she added with a smirk.

Angel couldn't care less either way. She loved little kids; they were adorable and, even if they were very sticky, so sweet and innocent.

"Here you guys go," the waitress said, handing them their breakfast. "Need anything else?"

The replied with a 'no thank you' and off she went. Angel made a face at Mimi's grotesque-looking eggs. "Mimi, how could you possibly think that that's good?"

"It just is," Mimi said with a shrug, shoving another bite into her mouth. "I'm sure that once I'm not pregnant anymore I'll think all the things I ate when I was are disgusting. But for right now, this tastes pretty damned good."

Angel shrugged and let Mimi continue to happily eat her breakfast, while staring at her own with something close to unease. Mimi glanced up and raised a brow. "Something wrong with your eggs?"

"Uhm…no…," Angel mumbled, taking a small bite. "I'm just not as…hungry as I thought…"

Mimi shrugged and continued to shove food into her mouth. Angel only managed a few more bites before she shoved away her meal with a grimace and leaned back against the back of the booth, resting a hand on her abdomen and wincing. "You know Mimi…suddenly, I don't feel so good."

"Oh?" Mimi asked, frowning. Her hormone-induced motherly instincts were beginning to kick in and she leaned across the table to feel Angel's forehead. "You don't feel like you have a fever. What's wrong?"

"My…stomach…," Angel said, her eyes squeezing shut. She felt dizzy and nauseous. _Not_ a good combination.

"Well, if you're going to get sick, please don't in front of me," Mimi pleaded.

Angel felt her stomach fly and sprinted to the bathroom. Everything that she had eaten and drank that morning came back in a colorful, acidic concoction. After she was sure she was done, Angel flushed the mess away and rinsed her mouth out at the sink. When she got back to the table, Mimi asked, "Are you better now?"

"Yeah, just those eggs tasted better going down," Angel joked, sipping her water. "Do you mind if we just go home?"

Mimi took one last bite of her omelet and nodded. They threw a few dollars onto the table for the waitress' tip and left. On the way to the loft where they knew Collins was, Mimi was the one who had to help Angel, which was a bit more difficult than she had thought, but they managed.

When they walked through the door, Collins took one look at Angel before he was at her side, asking, "What's wrong, Angel?"

"Nothing, just some bad eggs, I think," Angel dismissed. Collins picked her up and gently sat on the couch with her on his lap. He checked her forehead like Mimi had earlier and muttered, "You're not warm. Does anything hurt?"

"Just my stomach," she groaned as it flip-flopped again. "Roger, honey, do you have any Pepto-Bismol or something?" she inquired as she tried to keep a lid on her churning stomach long enough to get some relief. Or have someone shove a garbage can under her chin; whichever came first.

Roger immediately hopped up and rummaged through the cabinets, eventually locating a bottle of the pink medication and tossing it to Collins, whom handed it off to Angel quickly. Angel unscrewed the child-proof cap and gulped two large mouthfuls of it, closing her eyes and praying the stuff got to work quickly before she threw it back up.

"You had breakfast at the Life, right?" Collins asked, caressing Angel's head with one hand and her abdomen with the other. "They usually cook everything really well. Are you sure it was the eggs? Maybe you caught something from the subway the other night. I really didn't like the looks of that guy coughing up a lung who was sitting a few seats in front of us. And he coughed right on you, babe."

"No he didn't," Angel sighed. "He was a poor homeless man who probably had lung cancer from a lifetime of substituting cigarettes for food. I'm sure I've just got a tiny case of food poising. I'll be fine this time tomorrow, you'll see baby. Though could we maybe go home? Sorry to be rude but I really don't feel well right now and I want my own bed."

"Sure, babe," Collins said while Mimi assured, "Nothing rude about it, Chica. Feel better."

"Okay," Angel agreed, standing up a bit unsteadily and gripping Collins' shoulder for support. Collins stood up and wrapped an arm around her waist, looking at her concernedly. Angel sent him a reassuring look and glanced around the room. Maureen and Joanne weren't there, but Mark was and she waved at the filmmaker. "Bye, Marky. Meems, if that baby starts coming tonight I don't care if I've puked my guts out. I will stick them back in and be there if it kills me, understand? And Roger…just take care of yourself, honey."

"Will do," Roger said, waving. "Get better, Angel."

"I'll try, honey," she said, and walked out with Collins' heavy assistance.

"Angel, don't you think that you should see a doctor?" Collins asked as they walked the couple of blocks that was the distance from their apartment to the loft. Angel paled even more at the thought of going to another hospital. Collins noticed this and added "I just want to make sure that it's nothing too serious.

"I know you worry, but I'll be fine. I just need time to sleep it off," Angel reasoned. She gave Collins a small kiss on the cheek before changing into her pajamas and crawling into bed. After she was asleep, Collins grabbed his students' papers and sat next to her, monitoring her. He had graded about ten papers before he was asleep too.

The next morning Collins stirred and turned to see Angel wake up at about the same time. "Hey, welcome back," he said, with a smile. "Feeling better?" Angel took a breath to answer, but threw her hand over her mouth and ran to the bathroom. Collins winced at the noises, but followed anyway to see Angel leaning against the bathtub, paler than before. "Baby, we're going to the doctor today."

"Honey, I'm fine," Angel assured, resting her sweaty forehead against the cool ceramic of the bathtub. "Honestly, I'm okay now…I'm not gonna do it again. Just let me sit here for a few minutes and catch my breath."

"Angel…," Collins said. He was starting to feel antsy. Was Angel hiding something from him? She'd done that before, like when she'd gotten sick when she was battling AIDS. She'd almost died and he couldn't let her do that again. He sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her, caressing her ear and kissing her face. "Please, babe? Don't do this. You've done it before and I turned out bad for everyone."

"Don't worry about me," Angel sighed. "I'm okay, sweetheart. I don't have HIV anymore; I'm fine. I get sick just like everyone else, and they don't all go running to the doctor."

"But you're not everyone else, Ang," Collins murmured against her cheek. "You're my boyfriend and I worry about you."

"I know," Angel assured, going to stand. "But really, I'm – " she wobbled as she stood fully, her hand flying to her head, and fell back against Collins, whom caught her even as alarm and terror nearly paralyzed him. This was all too familiar.

"Angel, we are going to the doctor," Collins commanded gently, hugging him to her.

Angel nodded and buried her face into his chest.

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End Chapter

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A/N: And here is where I think we end it. Brace yourselves for the next chapter, peeps. :D Sorry it took so ridiculously long to update. School started for me and Katie's computer is an ass. No offense to Katie's computer; she said it herself. :P

_I did indeed say that! Why? Because my internet sucks. So what'd you guys think about the second chapter? Did you like it? I really hope you liked it! :D :D_

-Katie and Lynn (Marky's Scarfy and Katlynn888)


	3. Chapter 2: Doctor's Appointment

A/N: We are so sorry this took so long! We just haven't been able to communicate lately! We really hope you like this chapter, however, and that you don't come after us with pitchforks!

I suggest that if you are A.) Easily squicked, or B.) Aren't very open-minded, you leave now. Some really strange stuff is about to take place. Stay tuned if you think you can handle it.

Disclaimer: We do not own RENT. Jonathon Larson does. I'm too lazy to come up with something witty.

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Chapter 2 – Doctor's Appointment

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Less than an hour after their exchange on the bathroom floor, Angel and Collins were sitting in the waiting room at the walk-in clinic. Angel was squeezing Collins' hand nearly tight enough to break it, and Collins was keeping his mouth firmly shut. He knew she didn't like doctors. Doctors, to her, had always meant blood tests, bad news, and new and larger pills to take. He understood this, but he kept murmuring to her to calm down, and that everything would be okay.

"I'm sorry," Angel whispered shakily, pushing a strand of her wig behind her ear and bunching her skirt up in her hand once she'd done that. "I just...I'm scared."

"I understand," Collins whispered. "Believe me when I say, baby, that I understand. But you're obviously sick and need a doctor. You'll see; we'll be walking out of here in half an hour's time, and we'll know exactly what's wrong with you and how to get rid of it. You've got nothing to fear anymore."

"I know," Angel whispered. "Old habits die hard, I guess. Or in this case, old fears."

"Hey, look over there," Collins murmured, pointing to the large tank of brightly-colored fish that sat against the wall to the left of them. "Check out the fish. Help me name them."

Grateful for the distraction, Angel pointed out a bright yellow one that was swimming around each of the other fish. "Maureen," she decided.

Collins chuckled. He saw a colorful one that he decided to name 'Flo' because it reminded him of a flower. They continued to name the fish Bandit, Lorelei, Katherine, and other flamboyant names before a nurse walked into the room calling, "Angel Schunard?"

The drag queen felt her heart skip in fear and she grabbed Collins' hand tightly. Collins kissed her forehead before whispering, "It'll all be okay, I promise."

They followed the nurse into one of the several hospital rooms in the moderately-sized free clinic. "Nervous?" she asked with a matronly smile. Angel nodded, chewing a hole in her lip. "Well, all I'm going to do right now is weigh you, take your temperature, and record your blood pressure. All painless," she promised.

"Thanks, it's just I've never been comfortable around these places. Too many bad memories," Angel sighed.

She stepped onto the scale, sat with the ridiculous thermometer sticking out of her mouth, and had her arm squeezed too tightly, before the nurse smiled and said "The doctor will be in shortly."

Angel continued her lip-chewing as she looked around at the medical posters that hung on the walls. Asthmatic lungs, babies being born, many STD warnings. Gross, she thought.

"Baby, you're going to put a hole in your lip," Collins remarked while watching her.

She mumbled something into her lip and looked down at her skirt, still worrying it between her hands. Collins stepped up in front of her and took her hands in his, caressing the back of them with his thumbs. "Sweetheart, you'll be fine. Do you trust me?"

"Yes," Angel agreed.

"Then trust me when I say that you'll be fine. It's probably just the flu or something, and these doctors have got things that'll have you feeling brand-new in a few day's time."

"I know," Angel sighed. "I just..."

"You're scared," Collins whispered, stepping closer and taking her in his arms, hugging her. "There's no need to be."

Angel nodded into his shoulder and sighed against his neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," Collins said. "And you'll be fine."

Just then the door opened and the doctor stepped in, clearing his throat and watching with mild amusement at the young couple sprang apart and Collins migrated back to the chair in the corner of the room he'd been in before.

"Hello Angel," said the male, brunet doctor which stepped into their room. "I'm doctor O'Neil. What is it that brings you to my office today?" As he said this he migrated over to the rolling stool by the sink.

"Well, I've got something that's sort of like food poisoning, but the restaurant I ate at has never done this to me before," Angel explained, biting back the persistent nausea. "I thought I'd just wait it out, but Collins was worried, so I'm here."

"It's good that he worries. That shows he cares," the doctor remarked with a small grin. "Or that's what I tell my wife, at least."

"Exactly," Collins agreed. He was happy to have someone on his side.

Dr. O'Neil smiled and turned back to Angel. "So, by the looks of your temperature, you're fine, but I still want to take a blood test." Off of Angel's slightly panicked look, he added, "You haven't had one in a long time and we just want to make sure that everything is okay."

She let out a puff of relieved air. The doctor gave them directions to the wing of the building where they would get the blood sample taken, and told Angel to just rest, get plenty of fluids, and come back if things got worse.

To get the blood test done, they had to report to a lab, which was located on the other side of the clinic. The waiting room was circular, with chairs lining the walls and rows in the middle as well. Angel and Collins chose two seats against the wall, Angel sighing and leaning her head back against it.

"I ever tell you how much I hate blood tests?" Angel muttered.

"Only five hundred times," Collins assured, grabbing her hand. "It'll all be okay, babe. It's the flu, really."

Angel slit one eye open. "They'll probably test me for all the wrong things, you know. This is a free clinic…they don't have my medical records. And you know these places. It looks like a girl, it walks like a girl, it talks like a girl, it must be a girl."

"You're going to hate me, but I honestly can't blame them," Collins said. "You're very effeminate, Ang. If I didn't know you, I wouldn't even bother thinking that you might not be a girl. Even if this is New York."

"I know," Angel said, "But they're gonna waste their time testing me for stuff like pregnancy, instead of the serious shit that I might actually have. Like fuckin' prostate cancer or something."

"I don't think prostate cancer displays itself with nausea and vertigo…," Collins muttered.

"Whatever," Angel said. "It doesn't matter. The point still stands."

"Like I've been telling you," Collins said. "It can't be anything too serious, or you would have gotten a lot worse by now. You've pretty much stayed at the same constant for a while now."

"I've only been sick for a day."

"Most diseases are fast developing once you've got them."

"Whatever," Angel sighed again. "But you think I'm gonna be okay?"

"Positive."

The nurse called them in about ten minutes later and Angel held Collins' hand and stared pointedly into his brown eyes for the duration of the blood-taking. Then she was given a purple band-aid and told to take it easy for a while.

"So we can go?" Collins asked.

"You can go," the nurse confirmed. "Just get a lot of rest and drink a lot of fluids. She shouldn't be left alone for really long, just incase it gets worse, especially since we just took her blood. You can continue taking the anti-nausea medication you're already on. You should hear from us either later today or tomorrow at the latest."

"Okay, thanks so much," Collins said, helping Angel with her coat then leading her out of the room and out of the door.

On the way home, Angel was practically carried by Collins because she felt so immediately and insanely exhausted. Every few minutes she would nod off for a few seconds, but woke up right away, not exactly trusting everyone on the subway. It was extremely irritating and was beginning to give her whiplash.

Just as she was about to ask how close they were to home, the subway came to a halt and jolted everyone forward a few feet.

"Baby, come on," Collins whispered, helping her up. "We're almost home."

A few blocks later, Angel was carried through the door and laid in bed. Collins laid down next to her, ready for a nice nap, when the phone began blaring from the kitchen. Groaning, he got up and ran across the loft in an attempt to save Angel from waking up.

"Hello?"

"Hello, this is the Avenue A health clinic. Is this the residence of Angel Dumott-Schunard? I have her test results," a female voice asked on the other end.

"Yes," Collins said. "But she's not really able to come to the phone right now. Can I just take a message or something?"

"You can tell her 'Congratulations!'" the woman said happily.

Collins froze. "Congratulations for what?"

"She's pregnant."

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End Chapter; TBC

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A/N: So, uhm…yeah. *Hides*

-Lynn and Katie


	4. Chapter 3: Week Five, First Ultrasound

A/N: Unfortunately, it's only me (Lynn) this time around. :( I'm not happy about it, but Katie is very busy right now and unable to help at the moment. It sucks, but I'll do my best to write a good chapter without her. From now on, I'm thinking we'll go by the week, maybe? Well, anyway, that's where the title of this chapter is coming from.

Disclaimer: We, Katie and Lynn the fangirls/writers, do not own RENT. It all goes to Jonathon Larson.

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Chapter 3: Week Five, First Ultrasound

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"Wait, she's _what_?" Collins demanded of the woman on the other end of the line.

"Pregnant!" she chirped. "And you're her husband?"

"Boyfriend," he muttered in shock.

"Well, congratulations to you too!" she added. "You're going to have a baby! Anyway…"

"Wait, how can she be pregnant?" Collins asked.

"Well, sir…uhm…has she missed a few periods?" she asked.

"Yeah, she's missed a few," Collins snorted, rolling his eyes. _'A few' as in, SHE'S A GUY!_

Missing his sarcasm, the woman on the other end continued, "Birth control fails sometimes – condoms break, pills stop working. It might be a shock but take a while to get used to the idea. You'll come to like it."

"Okay…and you're sure you have the right results?" Collins said.

"Unless there are two Angel Schunards who come to our clinic," she said. "Nope."

"Yeah…that is kind of doubtful," sighed Collins.

"It is an unusual name. Anyway, we'd like to plan an appointment for her sometime within the next week. We're not sure how far along she is – blood tests don't tell you that – so we want to confirm the due-date for you, and just make sure the baby's doing alright. It's too soon to tell the sex – she's not showing at all, is she?"

"No…definitely not," snorted Collins. This was all very surreal.

"And if morning sickness just started…we're figuring seven to ten weeks. We've also got a prescription for her for some prenatal vitamins. You can come pick that up anytime you want. When would you like to schedule it?"

Collins had to think back to how his schedule at NYU looked for the next month—it changed that often—and said, "Do you have anything open for the day after next?" They had to get his sorted out, and get it sorted out fast. He was calming down but was still in a state of unwavering disbelief. No way was Angel pregnant. Just no way.

"Four o'clock sound good?" the girl chirped after a pause. "If not we have a six and a nine o'clock also open."

"The nine o'clock—is that AM or PM?"

"PM," she said. "It's our last slot of the day."

"We'll take that one," Collins sighed. God knew how long Office Hours would hold him over at NYU sometimes.

"Okay! Monday at nine o'clock!" she said.

After he hung up, he took a deep breath and started towards the bedroom.

When he reached the bedroom, Angel was still asleep, on her side. Collins took a sigh of relief that his efforts to let Angel sleep had succeeded, and decided he didn't want to wake her just now. But he knew he'd have to wake her in about an hour anyway—you weren't supposed to let patients, especially sick ones, whom had just had their blood taken sleep for very long. He'd wake her in about forty-five minutes, at five o'clock, and tell her then. Maybe that would give him time to compose himself and mull this over.

Both efforts proved futile, as he was maybe even more worked up by the time the top of the hour rolled around than he'd started. Angel began to stir by herself, and Collins hoped she wasn't awakening from the need to be sick again. But she just opened her eyes slightly and croaked, "Hey you."

"Hi," he whispered.

"How long have I been out?" she murmured, staring out the window. It couldn't have been very long; the sun was still up. But as this was August in New York, that could mean any time from about nine AM to nine PM.

"Only about an hour," murmured Collins, sliding down so he could hold her at less odd of an angle. "Uh…you hungry at all?"

Angel seemed to mull it over for several seconds before she finally murmured, "Mmno. Not right now."

"Still a bit nauseous?" asked Collins, rubbing his hand gently over her stomach. To think there could be something alive in there. A fetus. A baby. Their baby.

"Tiny bit," Angel replied, and moved her hand at an angle so she could run it through his thick, coarse hair. "Not nearly as much as I was earlier though. Maybe you're right—maybe it was just food poisoning or something."

"I told you," Collins replied, though knowing it wasn't.

Angel rose an eyebrow. "As I recall, you were the panicking one, telling me to go to the doctor this morning. How did our positions in this whole argument change?"

"When you were refusing to go to the doctor, I had this irrational fear that you were hiding something from me," Collins explained, mostly sighing his sentences. "But when you agreed, my mind decided that you couldn't possibly be hiding anything. So the fear part just kinda…dissolved."

Angel giggled slightly and cuddled against him. "The doctor call?"

"Yeah, about that," sighed Collins, pulling her closer to him. "Uhm…they think…they think you're pregnant."

Angel shot up and stared at him. "They think I'm what?"

"Pregnant."

Angel threw her head back and cackled, pounding his chest slightly in her hysteria. It wasn't overwhelmingly funny, but just so ridicules it was hilarious. She wiped her eyes, taking mascara and eye shadow with her tears of laughter, and said, "Oh, that's funny, baby! I really needed to laugh."

"I'm serious," Collins said.

Angel stared at him, her eyes darting all over his face. "You're not joking?"

"No," Collins said. "But…but I'm convinced they got it wrong."

"Oh my God," Angel said, staring down at her stomach. "What if they don't? How many Angel Dumott-Schunards can there possibly be in the world? Collins…we can't have a baby!"

"Angel, Angel, calm down," Tom said. "I'm sure this is all just a misunderstanding."

"Baby, I don't think it is," Angel whispered, shaking her head slightly. "I've been gaining weight; about three pounds in the past month. It's not a lot, and I wasn't really worrying because I've been eating a lot of the fatty stuff Mimi has to…but now I think about it, I've been exercising just as much. And I've been really hungry. When I'm not nauseous…I'm starving!"

Collins' eyes widened. Those were the exact symptoms that had brought their attention to Mimi's pregnancy. His hand squirmed under her top, laying a hand on her bare stomach. "Oh my God…we might actually be having a baby."

"But how…how is it possible?" Angel whispered. "And what are we gonna do? We don't have any money, and we don't have Roger's mom and dad to help us like he and Mimi do."

"We've got my parents," Collins pointed out. Were they really talking about this? "And they're not bad off. And we're pretty close."

Angel sighed and a few tears leaked out of her eyes. "We need to go to the doctor. Find out how this is possible. I just can't believe this."

"I already made an appointment," Collins said, rubbing the area around her navel to comfort. "We'll get answers, baby."

Angel looked down and lifted her shirt up, staring at her flat stomach. She whispered, "Anyone in there?"

"This is gonna sound really weird," said Collins. "But…I kind of hope there is."

"Me too," whispered Angel, putting her hand over Collins'. A baby. One that was completely their own; a physical manifestation of their love, and such a miracle besides. It was almost overwhelming.

* * *

"Angel Schunard?"

The waiting room, this time around, was very empty. This was the last appointment and the only other person in there was a very scraggly-looking man. The clinic was known for letting homeless people stay the night, and maybe this man was just one of those people. All the same, Angel and Collins were mostly alone.

When they heard Angel's name called, they stood up and followed the nurse into Doctor O'Neil's room. Here Angel lifted herself onto the table and Collins stood beside her, her hand in his. They both stared at the door.

When Doctor O'Neil entered, he tilted his head to the side in confusion. Angel was not in drag today. She hadn't been feeling well that morning, and it would be a lot easier to explain to the doctor why they were shocked at the diagnosis of pregnancy if Angel did not look like a girl this time around. Doctor O'Neil said, "Uhm…Angel?"

"Yup," Angel replied, meeting his eyes evenly.

Doctor O'Neil stared down at the clip board and said, "You were here earlier this week…they said your blood tests came back that you were pregnant." He stared between Angel and the clipboard, obviously thinking a mistake had been made. That, or he was seeing things.

"About that," sighed Angel, crossing her arms. "Would you mind gracing us with an explanation of how this is possible?" The more she'd mulled over it the last few days, the more she'd gotten upset that she'd been told she was pregnant with no explanation whatsoever.

"We didn't realize you were a man," said Doctor O'Neil. "Sometimes men will have an elevated level of estragon for whatever reason and will test positive for pregnancy. Is anyone close to you pregnant?"

"Yes," Angel said. "But I know I'm not going through that whole sympathetic pregnancy thing. She's almost nine months and I haven't been showing any symptoms until now, Doctor. Now I'm gaining weight, I'm vomiting in the morning—all hours of the day, for that matter—and I'm getting dizzy. And I'm eating twice as much as I normally do when I'm not feeling nauseous."

Doctor O'Neil sighed and thought for a moment before saying, "Well…okay. I've heard of something like this. It's very rare…but it has happened. There's a doctor, at NYU teaching hospital…She's been studying this for a few years. It's a complication from the AIDS vaccine, I believe. Did you have AIDS?"

"Yes," Angel replied. "We both did. And with all due respect, Doctor… No one told us there were risks like this associated with the vaccine."

"It was an unforeseen side effect," said Doctor O'Neil. "But, uhm…I can get you an appointment with her. Her name is Doctor Clark and she's an immunologist."

Angel nodded slowly. "And how much of this would the insurance Collins has through his job pay for? This all sounds really experimental and theoretical to me."

"It'll be the same as any maternity care, I'm sure," said Doctor O'Neil. "But that's honestly something to look into on your own."

Angel sighed and nodded. Collins said, "How would we go about…getting an appointment with this Doctor Clark?"

"I can make you an appointment with her," said Doctor O'Neil. "Like I said, she works out of the NYU teaching hospital's immunology department. She doesn't usually see patients, as she's more a scientist than an actual doctor, but she does make exceptions and I'm sure you'll be considered as an exception."

"Do you know her?" asked Angel.

"Well," said Doctor O'Neil. "She's the wife of my sister-in-law's husband's brother."

It took a second for Angel to comprehend the long family relation, before she nodded slightly. "Okay."

"I'll make an appointment for you," he said. As there was a phone in every exam room (most for paging nurses and other doctors, but they could make outside calls too) he simply walked over to the one hanging on the far wall and picked it up, dialing the office number.

There were three rings, then she picked up and answered with her name and title. He said, "Hi Lisa, it's Dan. I've got an interesting case here."

After several seconds of explaining to Doctor Clark their case, Doctor O'Neil's conversation ended rather abruptly with an, "Oh really? Well, that's great. I'll tell them…Okay. Bye."

He hung up and turned back to them. "Doctor Clark has decided to come directly here and examine you right away, Angel. She'll be here in about twenty minutes, so you can either stay here in this room, or go back out to the waiting room.

"We'll wait here," Collins said after a moment. He didn't feel like going back out to the deserted waiting room to stare at the dark fish tank and the four blank walls.

Doctor O'Neil nodded and made his exit, leaving the young couple alone in the exam room. Collins sat at the head of the table, and Angel laid down on the pad to put her head in his lap. Her hand was on her stomach once more, staring ahead with wonder. Collins caressed the hair next to her ear and quietly asked what she was thinking about.

"It's just amazing," whispered Angel. "That…we're having a baby."

Though it wasn't certain yet (And Collins had the suspicion Angel would be absoloutly heart-broken if it proved a false alarm.) Collins had to concur. "Yeah. It's just…Wow."

"Wow," Angel agreed softly.

Twenty-five minutes passed in relative silence, then Doctor O'Neil reentered with an unfamiliar blonde doctor on his heals. She was short with her hair in a cut which reached hear ears and followed her jaw line back. Her eyes were ice blue and seemed to pierce them in an intellectual fashion from behind glasses.

Her voice was high and girlish, completely contradictory to her appearance. She may have had the slightest accent—German or Swedish—but it was fleeting. "Hello, I'm Doctor Lisa Clark. I'm not one to make assumptions, so which one of you thinks you're pregnant?"

Collins pointed downwards to Angel who hadn't gotten a chance to get up yet (The aforementioned events had taken place in only a matter of seconds) and Angel poked herself in the chest with her drive to make the point known. Doctor Clark, far from being amused at their antics, simply nodded and dismissed Doctor O'Neil with a nod.

A nurse stepped in behind them and wheeled in what Angel could only assume was an ultra sound machine (from the prehistoric era, Angel's mind had to add) then walked back out again. Doctor Clark pulled the black swivel stool which sat under the desk at the far side of the room, and sat in front of Angel.

"I'm going to ask you a few questions," she mumbled, writing something on a piece of lined paper. She also pulled a tape recorder out of her coat pocket and said, "Do you mind? This, what is happening to you, is a subject of much research in the immunology field."

Angel gestured for her to go ahead.

Doctor Clark turned it on and said, "August thirteenth, 1993. Nine-thirty PM. Patient is Angel Dumott Schunard," she glanced at Angel, making sure she was pronouncing this right. Angel nodded and she continued, "Whom is the most recent in several cases of male pregnancy I have encountered in the state of New York. This is the first appointment. Today we will confirm the pregnancy, as well as identify how far along the pregnancy is and, if possible, the sex of the child." The longer she talked, the more her accent came out and her S endings began to sound more like Z's.

She left the recorder to sit on the desk and wheeled herself back over to where Angel was. She turned on the machine and it began to hum rather malevolently. She said, "You are twenty-four years old, correct?"

"Not quite," Angel said. "I'll be turning twenty-four in December."

She nodded and scribbled on her note pad again. She looked to Angel and said, "Does your bladder feel full at all?"

Thinking this was an odd question, Angel had to consider for a moment before shrugging and saying, "Yeah, kind of now that you mention it."

"Good," replied Doctor Clark, "that means we won't have to wait. Unzip your pants, please."

"Should I get up?" Collins, whom was still sitting with her head in his lap, asked.

"It doesn't matter," she replied. Then, to Angel, "Unzip your jeans and pull them below your abdomen."

Angel followed the directions, lifting herself slightly so she could get her jeans down far enough. A light blush painted her cheeks, but Collins squeezed her hand and Doctor Clark didn't seem to care. Male, female—it was all the same to her. Even so, for Angel's comfort, she placed a towel over the lowest extremities of Angel's torso, covering what she didn't need to see, and squeezed from a tube some greenish gel upon Angel's lower abdomen. The muscles in Angel's stomach flinched; not because the gel was cold—because it was actually quite comfortably warm—but because it was not a substance or texture she was at all used to having against her skin in such large quantities.

"Did the nurse warm it up for you like I asked?" inquired Doctor Clark absently as she placed the paddle against Angel's stomach and began moving it around, searching for a fetus.

Angel nodded and held her breath as the doctor searched for the image on the screen she needed to see. After a few moments, she started to panic. The doctor wasn't seeing anything. That meant nothing was in there…that meant they were wrong.

But then Doctor Clark made a noise of triumph and muttered something about a sneaky little devil. She said, "There, see the circle? No, that's your bladder; I'm talking about the very small one. It's the lopsided one."

Angel had been pointing to the several strange shapes on the monitor before she finally touched the right one. Doctor Clark nodded when her fingers brushed over that one, and Angel gasped. "That's…"

"That's your baby," replied Doctor Clark. "It's so tiny, it was hiding behind your bladder. I overestimated its development; it's just an embryo. About…five weeks, I'd say. Does that sound about right?"

Angel glanced at Collins and searched his face with watery eyes, just trying to keep herself composed so she could answer the doctor's questions. "Uhm…I guess. What was five weeks ago? Fourth of July? That…That sounds about right, yeah." She talked throatily, barely able to keep herself together.

"Was that the last time you had intercourse?" inquired Doctor Clark, still scribbling.

"Oh, no," Angel said. "That's just all I can think of. There was a two-week gap after that, so…that has to be it."

Once again, the blonde woman had no comment to this. She moved the paddle around a bit more, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Finding nothing, she turned it off and told Angel to clean herself off. She wheeled over to the recorder and said, "Embryo is very healthy, about five weeks old. Much too soon to tell sex, but there will be an appointment in about two months to determine that."

Doctor Clark wheeled back over to them and said, "I have to tell you, this is a very early stage in pregnancy, and it's very odd that you start experiencing the symptoms you're experiencing right now. But that could be part of the male pregnancy aspect of it. So far, I can't detect any tendencies for these pregnancies to go slower or faster. But this part of pregnancy is very high-risk. You're entering your second month. You have to be very careful, okay?"

Angel nodded, zipping her jeans and sitting up correctly. She was still trying to pull herself together and tears were dribbling down her face.

Doctor Clark, showing emotion for the first time, gently asked, "Would you like a moment to collect yourself before I explain to you what's going on? I know this is a shock."

"Uhm…" Angel sighed, wiping her eyes. Collins squeezed her hand, sitting beside her and rubbing the small of her back. Angel finally said, "I think I'm alright. And I really want too know what's going on."

Doctor Clark nodded and walked into the hallway, calling, "Emily! Bring me my laptop, please!"

Emily, the brunette nurse whom had wheeled in the ultra sound machine, brought in a gray laptop and set in on the desk before making a hasty retreat. It seemed, to Angel at least, that this woman's reputation preceded her, and she was not to be messed with.

As Doctor Clark wheeled over to the desk and fiddled with the computer to get it working, Angel looked at Collins and whispered, "Oh my God…Collins…that was our baby. It's…it's so tiny!"

"It's only an embryo," Collins said.

Angel whispered, "I know, but…wow. It's so tiny, almost not even there. I'm scared."

She didn't have to add, "Scared to loose it", because it went without saying. He wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "It's okay."

"Okay," said Doctor Clark, wheeling back towards them. She set the computer on her lap, facing them. "I've put together a diagram, just to aid in my explanation. Firstly, I need to explain that this side effect only happens to men whom posses a certain gene. It was only recently discovered thanks to our research. The gene is by no means common, however, so you're a rather special case, Angel."

Angel nodded slowly, staring at the computer and wondering when she would start with what was actually going on with her body.

"Well, anyway," said Doctor Clark, and made a few clicks on the computer. Suddenly, a diagram appeared of the male genitalia. She said, "This is, of course, what your genitalia should look like. Now, what we believe happened, is you have this gene which made you susceptible to a mutation. What we had to do to make the first stage of the HIV vaccination work, was to be able to go into the DNA of the virus and switch it around so it would stop changing, and make way for the second stage of the vaccine; the pills you took for several months. This involved us injecting the vaccine with its own DNA, thus making the vaccine almost a bacterium itself. But a human-like bacterium, in that it contained its own karyotype, which was made up of one chromosome. In a normal person, it wouldn't have been able to get into the human DNA you posses.

"Unfortunately, you have this rare gene we didn't realize existed in some people, in place of the gene with would have protected you. What it did was invade your own blood and work its way all the way down to your chromosomes. From here, it managed to change your last chromosome to XXY."

Angel blinked. "Where did the extra X come from?"

"The gene you have recognized the DNA we implanted in the vaccine to change the virus from RNA do DNA as an extra X," said Doctor Clark. "It's complicated, but basically your body thought it was becoming a whole different gender, and developing another set of sexual organs. Thus, this happened." She clicked a button on the computer and it showed a very strange configuration forming. A strange cavity morphed into existence somewhere between the anus and testicles, tubes formed and connected everywhere, and those organs already there either moved or, in the case of the prostate, got closer to the cavity.

"This looks like it would be painful," Angel said with a frown. She honestly couldn't remember any foreign pains; in her abdomen or anywhere else, for that matter.

"It does," said Doctor Clark. "But this didn't happen all in a few weeks, or even a few months. Most likely, it was triggered a few hours after you got your first dose of the vaccine and has been forming since then. It probably only stopped about two months ago, enabling you to become pregnant."

Angel nodded slowly as the diagram repeated itself over and over again. It was all rather disconcerting and she finally asked, "Is there any way to stop that thing?"

Doctor Clark pushed another button and the diagram's progress stopped. She said, "Here's what your body basically looks like now. Your rectum has split in two directions, one which leads from your intestines, as always, and another which leads to this cavity, which serves like a uterus. When you engaged in anal intercourse with your partner, his sperm traveled into this passage leading to the cavity, which serves almost like the cervix.

"Now, here's where it gets very strange," said Doctor Clark. "What happened to your sperm, is that they contracted a virus of sorts, also linked to the vaccine and this gene. When your body sensed the sperm of your partner, it reacted almost as if it was a virus. We're not entirely sure why it would do this—like I said, we've only been able to study it actively for about two years now. Anyway, it reacted like it was a virus, only instead of releasing antibodies, it released your own sperm to go meet it. And upon meeting, your sperm formed into an egg and allowed itself to be fertilized."

"That's weird," Angel agreed, her mouth falling open. She glanced back at Collins to gauge his reaction, but all she saw was a furrowing of brows.

"Hey Doc," he muttered, staring at the diagram, "What if we both contributed a Y to this kid? What would that look like?"

"We're not entirely sure, but from some testing we've been doing on lab rats…it would mean neither sexual organ forms, and they are completely infertile with no gentiles." She took a deep breath. "Which means the child would most likely die within a few hours because it wouldn't be able to expel waste from its body."

"Well then let's pray to God it's got junk," muttered Collins, and Angel slapped his shoulder with a hiss of his name. The whole rant the doctor had just spewed had disconcerted her enough; she didn't need Collins displaying his inappropriate sense of humor as well.

"Well," sighed Angel. "This is…"

"A lot to take in, I know," assured Doctor Clark. "And probably scary."

"Has anyone but me actually had this _happen_ to them?" asked Angel.

"Two other men," said Doctor Clark. "But one was determined to terminate it, and the other miscarried only three months in."

Angel nodded and sighed. She glanced at Collins and nuzzled into his shoulder.

"I think we've gone over everything that needs to be done," said Doctor Clark. "I'd like for you to come back next month, but make an appointment with me at my office at NYU. I'll give you details on that later. I think I'd like monthly visits with you, as this is so rare you'll need special care, and your pregnancy will help with our research."

Angel nodded, not really sure if she liked the idea of being a test subject, but realizing she had pretty much no choice; especially if she wanted a doctor who knew anything about this. She said, "Okay."

"And here is a prescription for prenatal vitamins," she added, handing her a pre-written prescription. "Doctor O'Neil wrote this one, but I'll be your primary physician from now on."

"Thank you," Angel said, looking down.

"I'll drop that off at Walgreen's on my way to work tomorrow," sighed Collins, taking it from her.

Angel nodded and looked at Doctor Clark. "Doctor…is there anything else?"

"There was one thing…" sighed Doctor Clark. She thought for a second before she said, "Oh! I don't want you to continue taking whatever anti-nausea medication you've been taking. I know you don't like being sick, but it could be bad for you and the baby."

"Well, what happens if I can't keep anything down?" asked Angel. "That's just as bad, if not worse for the baby."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," replied Doctor Clark. "Now, go home and rest. Take care of him." She looked at Collins now. "He's going through something rough."

"I know," Collins replied, hugging Angel to him.

Doctor Clark nodded, appearing to be satisfied, then walked out.

The couple rode the subway home, Collins holding Angel the whole time. When they got to their apartment, Angel took off her jacket and dropped it on the couch before walking to the bedroom and laying down on the bed. Collins joined her side, lifting up her shirt once more to stare at her stomach. "So wow. There's a little…tiny…living thing in there."

"Living," Angel whispered in agreement, covering his hand. She looked up at him and whispered, "Tom, I'm so scared. But…I love you. You know that. And I already love our baby, even if it is about the size of a peanut right now."

Collins smiled and leaned down to kiss her. Angel sighed. She looked so young right now; so scared and yet so happy. To Collins, she seemed all of seventeen, not twenty-three. He scooted down to rest his head against her stomach, kissing it. "Damn, some weird stuff led up to this, though. Such freak events, huh?"

"Yeah," sighed Angel. "But…Like I said, I kind of like the idea. It's a piece of me, and a piece of you…in a person. In a baby that we get to raise and watch grow up. I'm excited." Excited in a long-term way she'd never experienced before. Excited for the rest of her life; how it would change with the birth of this baby, with the pregnancy. She couldn't wait.

Collins put his ear against Angel's stomach as if he could hear the tinier-and-a-quarter baby, but all he heard was the rumbling of Angel's stomach, and laughed. "You haven't eaten since this morning, babe. I'm gonna make you something to eat."

"I'm tired," Angel mumbled.

Collins sighed in defeat and stood up, picking her up to tuck her under the covers. Angel giggled and kissed his cheek. "You can wake me up later if you think I've gotta eat something so badly."

"I'll just make you a big breakfast," Collins decided. "But you're going to eat more from now on, even if that means I have to go without."

Angel nodded and cuddled up against him. His hand found her stomach, and he put his hand on it. Angel smiled and covered his hand with hers.

Their baby. What a terrifying, fantastic, foreign thought. Their baby. How…How lovely.

**

* * *

End Chapter; TBC

* * *

**

A/N: Incase you haven't noticed, updates are not going to be a regular thing…until probably summer. And I'm going to try not to have to do this again without Katie. It really depressed me, lol! Well, this chapter will have Katie's input still, so it won't be completely without her.

-Lynn (And Katie.)


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